Right now, the U.S. spends more on its health than any other industrial county but still leaves nearly 50 million of its people without routine care. Obama wants lawmakers to find a way to provide health insurance to all Americans while holding down prices. Several Congressional committees have been struggling to come up with new plans and the early results have been complicated, controversial and costly.

The process is starting to take its toll in public opinion. Obama is still popular. An ABC News-Washington Post poll found that 59 percent of Americans approve of how he's doing his job. But on health care, he's slipped below 50 percent for the first time, with just 49 percent approving of his efforts on the issue.